Just A Game
by Imperfect Shadow
Summary: Alexia Enrei has just been accepted to Battle School. As she tries desperately to fit in and gain the trust and friendship of the great Ender Wiggin, the war with the Buggers grows nearer. **No updates until summer, patience plz!**
1. Chosen One

Alexia Enrei threw herself stomach-down on her bed, picking up the remote to her stereo and turning the volume up. Music pounded in her ears, an old dark-rock band that her great-great-grandparents had listened to when they were young-older than her, but still young.

_Catch me as I fall  
say you're here and it's all over now  
speaking to the atmosphere  
no one's here and I fall into myself  
this truth drives me into madness  
I know I can stop the pain if I will it all away_

                She sang along with the eerie, almost heavenly voice, nodding her head to the tune.

                "Alex! Alex, come here!"

                Alex sighed, rolling off the bed and running down the hall to the kitchen. The music still played in her room…

_Don't turn away  
don't give in to the pain  
don't try to hide  
though they're screaming your name  
don't close your eyes  
God knows what lies behind them  
don't turn out the light  
never sleep never die_

                "Hello, Alexia." Alex looked up. A tall, lean man dressed in a black military uniform stood at the doorway. He smiled kindly down at her, and she swallowed her throat suddenly very dry.

                "Please, she prefers to be called Alex," she heard her mother say quietly.

                "Alex, then." said the officer. "I would like to talk to you for a moment, Alex. Alone."

_I'm frightened by what I see  
but somehow I know that there's much more to come  
immobilized by my fear  
and soon to be blinded by tears  
I can stop the pain if I will it all away_

                Her mother left the room, and Alex could see that she was about to cry. She heard her pick up the phone and speak into it-"821-3398"-her father's work number. _What's she doing? Why does she wanna talk to Daddy? She forced herself to think. But Alex wasn't stupid. They wouldn't pick a stupid child for Battle School. No, there was only one reason this man was here._

_Don't turn away  
don't give in to the pain  
don't try to hide  
though they're screaming your name  
don't close your eyes  
God knows what lies behind them  
don't turn out the light  
never sleep never die_

                "Alex, do you know who I work for? I work for the I.F. Do you know why I'm here?"

                "Of course, I'm not stupid. Only a complete _idiot_ would wonder why _you're here." she snapped. Anger was her way of dealing with fear._

                Apparently, he already knew this.

                "Scared, Alex?" he asked wickedly.

_Fallen angels at my feet  
whispered voices at my ear  
death before my eyes  
lying next to me I fear  
she beckons me shall I give in  
upon my end shall I begin  
forsaking all I've fallen for I rise to meet the end…_


	2. We're Buggies?

                Alex was starving. None of the passengers were allowed to eat for 24 hours before the flight, but she hadn't eaten since the Battle School officer had come with the news that she was accepted. He had given her a choice, asked her if she wanted to come and be trained or not. But was it really a choice? The guilt would have driven her insane, knowing that she could have had a chance to help Earth and passed it up because she was afraid. No, she would go, and she wouldn't complain or cry.

                What would life be like out in space? Different gravity, different food. All her friends--if she ever made any--would all be boys. There were very few girls in Battle School, and she doubted they'd welcome her. They wanted to be the only ones, didn't they? But I'm not going to cry, she told herself sternly. I'll never cry or complain, I swear it.

                There was a sudden blur of color next to her, and she turned to see a boy slide into the seat next to her. He didn't to seem to notice her for a moment, but his face broke into a grin when he saw her.

                "Hi there, little girl," he said. She looked him over--bright, icy blue eyes, feathery silver-blonde hair, tanned and tall for a 6-year-old—and then answered him.

                "Hi, little boy."

                "So, we got ourselves a konojo in our little pack. Lucky us!"

                Alex blushed.

                "You won't even notice in a while, I'm sure."

                "True, after they've whipped us all into shape, we'll be too tired to even remember our own names, much less yours, kono!"  He said, but he was grinning, and Alex immediately warmed to this boy.

                "You don't even know my name, so how can you forget it?" she asked him.

                "Well, you don't know mine." Alex grinned.

                "Alexia Enrei. Just call me Alex,"

                "Actually, I prefer kono. Aaron Tyler."

                "Another American. Woohoo."

                "Lucky, huh? This pack'll kill our little asses before we get to the school." They both laughed at this, and Alex felt--amazingly—comfortable. She doubted she'd ever have to worry about making friends now. The two chatted for a while, telling each other about the homes and families they were leaving behind. Aaron was saying something about his best friend, who was a year older than him and had been recruited to Battle School a few months ago, when suddenly the shuttle fell completely silent. Alex looked away from Aaron to see a fit, middle-aged man step up from a ladder.

                "So, this is our newest group? Interesting combination," he said, looking directly at Alex and Aaron. "Well, no matter. You'll all be ours after a couple weeks, won't you?" A couple launchies smirked, some coughed, Alex swallowed hard and wondered what he meant by his almost scornful words. Every kid here was the best of the best, taught and monitored almost since birth. Yes this man acted as though they were a shuttle-full of bugs, fresh and ready to be picked on and eventually squashed. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Aaron grimace.

It looked like things were going to get dirty from here.


	3. Launchies Rule!

                "Alright you all, this is your new home," said the man who took care of Launchies. "And my name is Yekk, so don't forget. If you get lost, which is pretty easy to do at first, just find someone and tell them you're in Yekk's group and they'll take care of it. Got it?"

                There were murmurs of "yessir," and "got it," but Alex just nodded. She stood straight with her hands behind her back and her chin up. No hiding here, she'd have to earn her way with these boys. She was the only girl in the launch group, and something told her they wouldn't make it easy for her.

                Of course, her instincts weren't perfect.

                "So, you're the little kono?" said one of the boys, a tall, dark kid with amazingly bluish-green eyes. His tone was affectionate and teasing rather than annoyed, and she realized that with so few girls in the school, those groups who did have one may not trust them as much, but they did become protective of them. _Because they think we're weaker, thought Alex. __They think we can't take care of ourselves, much less anyone else. I guess that's ok though, I'll never have to worry about getting hurt or anything. I just have to prove to them that I'm good at what I do…_

"Yea, I'm the little girl. How ever did you notice?" she asked sarcastically. The boy laughed.

                "Because no boy is that pretty," he replied. She grinned.

                "Yea, whatever. I'm Alex."

                "Zane," he said, holding out a hand. She took it.

                "So, I hear your scores were pretty high. That's an understatement, by the way."

                "Oh…yea. I tied for second-highest score."

                "Interesting. Who's the rival?"

                "No idea. But hey, I'd rather not talk about it, neh?"

                "Eh."

                Alex loved the Battle School slang. She had caught on to it quickly, and it flowed off her tongue easily with a simple rhythm, like some endless tune that only the Battle School geniuses could play. Yekk instructed his group on choosing bunks—there was a rush to get one in the back away from the door---and palming their lockers open to reveal their desks and suits, which were basically overalls. Disgusted that they gave such childish clothing, Alex created her username and password, Alexia\\\1/2htwwlla. It was her little saying for herself, **½** **hearted ****tiger **w**ho ****was ****lost **l**ong ****ago.**

                "So, how 'bout we go meet the other launchies?" Aaron asked her when she had locked her desk up.

                "Sure."

                Together, she, Aaron, and Zane—who insisted on being called Inzane—began to talk to the other kids in the room. Most of the boys took to Alex quickly, and she decided her life might not be so hard here. She could earn the trust of these guys easily, and not a single one of them made a snide remark or nasty comment about her being a girl. _I got lucky, she thought. __In this whole group there's not one boy who dislikes me._

               After meeting all the others, the launchies trooped to dinner, which was quite uneventful, and then back to their rooms where they washed up and climbed into their bunks. Alex had gotten one in the middle across from Aaron, who had grinned when he saw where she was and gave a little wave. It would be easy enough to jump across to his bunk, and they could chat without the teachers noticing them out of bed. Most of the boys slept naked, or in just underwear or boxers. Alex, although only 6, had brought along simple sport bras for just this purpose. She changed into one and a pair of underwear then slipped into bed and listened as the boys all settled down into their bunks. She ran over the names of her launch group in her mind as she listened to the rustling of covers and soft breathing of her friends.

                Aaron Haes Tyler; Zane "Inzane**" Zahi; Bakudan "Bloody" Ketsueki; Jay Weiss; Ash, or Smokey, Theis; Sani Kun, or San; Zión Zero, who was simply called "Zero"; Ahinco Rento; Raptor Lieon; Sess Sumah; Matsuro "Doom" Ketsurui; Ego Nebula; Partir "Flamer" Congeler; Lyft Leoht, called "Leo"; Ár Clcoh; Gouka Oni, who's name meant "Hellfire Demon" but preferred to be called Oni. And then there was Alexia Enrei, who they all now called Kono. **

                _We're an interesting group; I have to say that, Alex thought to herself. But there was something wrong, she realized. Quieting her thoughts, she listened closely: yes, there it was—crying? She sat up and looked around the room. Boys were turned on their sides, their bodies shaking with suppressed sadness. Alex bit her lip._

                _Of course they're sad…they miss their families. How come I'm not crying? I'm supposed to be the emotional one!! She thought. She was worried. _I can't let them suffer like that. I won't let them be alone anymore…__

                She began to hum an old song from a Japanese show she had watched when she was younger. The music had been very pretty she remembered, and she had looked up the lyrics and memorized them a long time ago.

                "**Oto no nai mahiru, Kaze wa tada akarui, Sukoshi nemutasou ni, Hanabira ga yureta, Nani ge nai kono omoi, Nee, hito wa donna kotoba de, Yondeiru no, Shiroi suna no tsuki, Toji kometa hanashi o, Hikari furasu you ni, Kikasete ne sotto, Itsuka shiru toki ga kuru no?  Mune no itami o, Soshite ima yori yasashiku, Naru no ne, Atatakai kono omoi, Nee, hito wa donna namae de, Yondeiru no. Shiroi suna no tsuki, Mabushikute mienai, Tooi mirai no koto, Kikasete ne sotto." She sang into the darkness, and she noticed the boys looking up at her, and several smiled at her, and some whispered along, particularly San, Sess, Doom, Oni and Bloody, who were all Japanese and knew the words from childhood. By the time she had finished, everyone was asleep except for herself and Aaron.**

                "You have a nice voice," he commented in a whisper. He lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.

                "Thanks," she replied quietly.

                "Done now?" he murmured.

                "Mmmhmm…" and the two drifted off into sleep.


	4. He Said He Was Sorry

A/N-I don't use BattleSchool Slang when it is just between Alex and her close friends ("eh" and "neh" will be used, but not the ghetto-like way of talking. It's too hard for me to do ^^;;) Sorry!

                "Black, green, black, right?"

                "Uh-huh. Hey, when's lunch?"

                _Is that all boys think about?!? Alex wondered._

                "How would I know?" she replied.

                "Feh. Guess we'll just have to follow the others, neh?"

                "Eh."

                "So, you ever find out who your _rival is?" Aaron inquired teasingly._

                "Yea, um…some kid. Forgot his name." She murmured. Aaron turned to stare at her in amazement, as though to say "Oh yea Alex, which _really _narrows it down…to 200." Alex rolled her eyes.

                "Look, I've got better things to do than try to find some loser-kid who just happened to hit the books harder than I did!" she said, annoyed. Her friend continued to look at her, as though hoping she would give in and tell.

                "You ever gonna stop staring?!" she asked, unable to keep the irritation out of her voice. Aaron grinned.

                "Pretty touchy about it, aren't ya?" he asked, not bothering to let her answer. "You know, I'm not stupid. You're scared."

                "Kuso!"

                "C'mon Alex, I can read you like a book. You don't want to admit your scores tied with the Wiggin kid, because then people would start noticing you and paying attention to the little genius-girl. And don't give me that crap about us all being geniuses."

                "Screw you! That's bull," Alex retorted angrily.

                "Whatever. Just admit it. Admit you're scared. Tell me what is so _secret_ about you that don't want people to see in you, for fear of them hurting you, figuring you out."

                "Shut _up!" she cried, half-turning to slam Aaron into the wall, her small hands pressed against his chest._

                "Did it ever occur to you," she whispered, her voice dripping with venom, "That I might just _like my __privacy?"_

                In a flash, Aaron had grabbed her arm, twisting it painfully behind her back. He swiveled and slammed her hard against the where she had pushed him; Alex gasped at the cold steel on her back, the iciness penetrating her thin suit. She groaned in pain as her friend slid her up so that her throat was level with the top of his head, his hands gripping and bruising her shoulders.

                "Never," he said acidly, "Ever touch me like that again. I swear I'll make you regret it, Alex." His freezing blue eyes were fierce and burning with ire, and Alex waited for the blackness that was surely coming. Instead, she felt Aaron let go of her, and she slumped to the floor, her whole body aching fiercely, her arm throbbing where he had twisted it.

                "Aaron," she whispered, without looking up. "I'm sorry."

                She heard the rustling of his suit as he kneeled; his hands wrapped gently around her wrists and pulled her to her feet. She had never felt so pathetic or stupid; of course Aaron could hurt her if she provoked him like that! He was bigger, stronger, not to mention she was just a little girl. A kono. She felt arms go around her; her friend hugged her gently for a moment, burying his face in her hair.

                "Sorry, Kono. I guess training got the better of me. I'm sorry," he whispered again, and then let her go.

                "It's ok…" she murmured.


End file.
